Edge rushers Chase Young and Carl Granderson have been two of the only bright spots for the New Orleans Saints through the first half of this season. The Saints rank 29th in total defense, including 28th against the pass and 29th against the run. However, Young and Granderson have consistently terrorized opposing quarterbacks on a weekly basis.
Young has 8 sacks, with Granderson chiming in with 7.5 sacks of his own. The two rank second and third, respectively, in sacks across the NFL so far this season. At the top of the leader board is Will Anderson of the Houston Texans with 9.5 sacks. Young and Greg Rousseau of the Buffalo Bills are in a second-place tie. Granderson is in a tie for fourth-most with David Bailey (New York Jets), T.J. Watt (Pittsburgh
Steelers), Elijah Ponder (New England Patriots) and Andrew Van Ginkel (Minnesota Vikings).
Young had a breakout season for the Saints in 2025 with a career-best 10 sacks and 11 tackles for loss along with 15 QB hits and 30 pressures. His 8 sacks through eight games in 2026 are already the second most of his seven-year career. Young also has tied a career-best with 4 tipped passes so far along with 15 pressures. Over his last 19 games with New Orleans, Young has 18 sacks. If the Saints had a better record, he'd likely be one of the mid-season favorites for NFL Defensive MVP.
Granderson has been a spectacular complement to Young. He had a sack against the Detroit Lions in the season opener, then was quiet the next two weeks before missing Week 4 against Atlanta. Since then, Granderson had 1.5 sacks in three consecutive games before 2 sacks against the Cleveland Browns on Sunday. The eight-year veteran is only one away from tying his career-best in sacks, 8.5 recorded in 2023. Granderson also has 9 QB hits and 12 pressures to go along with 7 tackles for loss.
At just 27 and 29 years old respectively, Young and Granderson have been the cornerstones of a New Orleans defense that has otherwise underperformed. They are responsible for 15.5 of the team's 23 sacks with Kaden Elliss (9) the only other Saints defender with more than 4 QB hits. If New Orleans is to make an upward move in the NFC standings over the second half of the year, it'll likely be on the backs of Chase Young and Carl Granderson.
This article originally appeared on Saints Wire: Saints' Chase Young, Carl Granderson among NFL sacks leaders
